Deserts of Pakistan

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where to die

 

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Camping in the Cholistan Desert

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Cholistan Desert

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Cholistan desert,

The Cholistan Desert, locally known as Rohi, lies near Bahawalpur in Pakistan and covers an area of 10,200 square miles. Its connects into the Thar desert which then extends into India. The desert has an average rainfall of 5 inches a year and there is very little cultivation. The area was once well watered by a river, now called the Hakra in Pakistan and which was known in Vedic times as the Sarasvati. All along the 500-km of dried up river are over 400 archaeological sites, which date back to the Indus civilization 4500 years ago and are clustered around Derawar Fort, one of the major landmarks of the Cholistan desert.

 

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DESERTS OF PAKISTAN

Deserts, in Pakistan, make up a large part of the country’s geography, especially in the central and south-eastern regions. The major deserts are:

• Thar,
• Cholistan,
• Thall, and
• Kharan

These areas receive very little rain fall and are have large tracts of barren wastelands, with formation of sand dunes rising sometime to 150 m above ground level. The desert areas also support wildlife including desert gazelles, bustards, jackals, foxes, wild cats, lizards and snakes etc.




Despite harsh living conditions these desert areas are also inhabited by a significant number of people and livestock. The desert people mostly lead a semi-nomadic life and move from one place to another in search of water and fodder for their animals. The specific desert life style of the people has also given rise to very unique cultures, traditions and arts.

 

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The caravan of decorated Rohi Camels spotted along National Highway

Cholistan, Bahawalpur

 

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The Kharan Desert is a sandy and mountainous desert situated in Balochistan province in south-western Pakistan. This desert was the site of Pakistan's second nuclear test, Chagai-II, which was carried out on 30 May 1998. The land is not fit for agriculture due to low irrigation.


Golden Desert of Chagai

Photos: Abdul Qadri Jamali